The Republic of Kiribati (pronounced “kiri-bas”) consists of 33 isl&s spread over a wide area in the central Pacific Ocean. Only about 20 of the isl&s are inhabited. The country is part of the Commonwealth, an association of Great Britain & several of its former dependent states. The capital is Bairiki, on Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Isl&s.
Kiribati straddles the equator. It is composed of three isl& groups: the Gilbert Isl&s, the Phoenix Isl&s, & most of the Line Isl&s. The country also includes Banaba, an isl& west of the Gilberts. Most of the population lives on the Gilbert Isl&s, which are about 2,800 miles (4,500 kilometers) northeast of Australia. There are 16 isl&s in the Gilbert group. Most of the country's isl&s are atolls, or ribbons of coral reef surrounding a lagoon. The atolls are all less than 25 feet (8 meters) above sea level.
The isl&s of Kiribati spread over some 2 million square miles (5 million square kilometers) of the ocean. However, the country's total l& area is only 313 square miles (811 square kilometers). Kiritimati (Christmas Isl&), in the Line Isl&s, is the world's largest coral atoll. It accounts for nearly half of the country's l& area. The country's soil is mainly infertile. Few types of plants will grow in it. An exception is coconut palms, which cover the isl&s. Breadfruit trees & p&anus palms grow on some of the isl&s. There are many sea birds. A wide variety of fish swim among the reefs.
Almost all the people of Kiribati are of Micronesian origin. About half of the people are Roman Catholic. Most of the rest are Protestant. The population speaks Gilbertese, a local language. The official language is English. It is widely spoken on Tarawa Atoll. Tarawa has the country's highest concentration of people. It also has the most urban development. In most of Kiribati the people live in huts in traditional villages.
More than 70 percent of the population of Kiribati farms or fishes. The main crops are coconuts, taro, bananas, breadfruit, & papaws. Pigs & chickens are raised. The country does not produce enough to feed its people, however. It must buy food from other countries.
Kiribati sells copra, or dried coconut meat, & fish to other countries. It charges fees to foreign fishing fleets that use the country's waters. Tourism is another important source of income. In addition, Kiribati is dependent on foreign aid.
In the past Kiribati mined phosphate from the isl& of Banaba. The country used up the isl&'s supply by 1979, & mining stopped. Money from the sale of phosphate was placed in reserve. Interest from the fund still contributes to the country's income.
The earliest settlers in the Gilbert Isl&s & Banaba arrived about 4,000 to 5,000 years ago. The settlers came from Southeast Asia by way of Micronesia. Samoans came to the southern isl&s in about the 14th century AD & merged with the older groups.
Various European explorers visited the isl&s from the 16th to 19th centuries. Whalers, coconut-oil traders, & slave traders arrived in the 19th century, mainly from Europe. In 1892 the Gilbert Isl&s became a British protectorate, or dependent state. Britain took Banaba in 1900, after the isl&'s valuable phosphate was discovered. In 1916 the British joined the isl&s with a Polynesian group to form the Gilbert & Ellice Isl&s Colony. Later the colony included most of the Phoenix & Line isl&s.
In 1942–43, during World War II, the Japanese occupied the Gilbert Isl&s. Japan & the United States fought a major battle on Tarawa. The United States & Britain tested nuclear weapons on Kiritimati in the 1960s.
The Gilbert & Ellice Isl&s Colony split apart in 1976. The Ellice group was granted independence as Tuvalu in 1978. The Gilberts became the independent nation of Kiribati in 1979. Population (2001 estimate), 94,000.
